For 101 years, Neighborhood House has been Opening Doors of Opportunity for children, families and seniors in need in our community. Opening doors of opportunity is at the heart of Neighborhood House whether we are helping kids succeed in school, working to reduce hunger and homelessness or supporting seniors to continue living on their own. This year, Neighborhood House has availed itself of some remarkable opportunities. Our programs for young children, in particular, have grown by leaps and bounds. In July 2005, we became the managing organization for the highly-esteemed Child Care Improvement Project (CCIP). CCIP works to improve the quality of child care by offering providers the training and resources they need to create an educationally-enriching environment within their in-home child care businesses. Neighborhood House's Early Oregon Head Start Program (serving children birth to 3) expanded to include 35 more children with support from a new grant from the Portland Children's Investment Fund, and our Oregon Head Start Prekindergarten added a new class of 18 children at the Markham Elementary site. Neighborhood House has also begun reaching out beyond our traditional Southwest Portland to assist low-income children and families on Portland's east side. Our Parenting Program, drawing on the staff's outstanding expertise in working with recent immigrant and other diverse populations, has taken its Ready for School program across the Willamette to three North Portland schools. Through the Child Care Improvement Project, we are helping more than 800 children across Multnomah County to be better prepared to learn when they enter the classroom. We have all heard about the effectiveness of high-quality early-intervention programs. Neighborhood House is proud to be a leader in early childhood programming. We see investing in young children as a unique opportunity to build self-sufficiency and help children develop to their fullest potential. Neighborhood House opens doors of opportunity for other community members, as well.... For volunteers who want to share their time and talents to help neighbors build better lives. And donors who want to invest in their community knowing that their dollars are going to support programs that are needed and effective. Neighborhood House offers all of us a unique opportunity to know who our neighbors are and feel a deeper connection to them. Please take this opportunity to meet some of the neighbors that have been helped in the last year and learn about the range of programs Neighborhood House offers described in this annual report. Then don't forget to share this report with a friend or community member -- open a door and invite them to learn about Neighborhood House. Yours,

Faith-Community Partners Capitol Hill United Methodist Church Congregation Nevah Shalom Hillsdale Community Church, UCC Lake Oswego United Methodist Church Mt. Carmel Lutheran Church Multnomah Presbyterian Church New Thought Ministries of Oregon Portland Christian Center St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church St. Barnabas Episcopal Church St. Clare Catholic Church St. John Fisher Catholic Church St. Luke Lutheran Church St. Mark Presbyterian Church St. Thomas More Catholic Church Trinity Presbyterian Church Vermont Hills United Methodist Church West Hills Christian Church West Hills Covenant Church West Hills Friends Church West Portland United Methodist Church

If your business or community organization would like to support one of Neighborhood House's programs or special events, please contact Development Director Mari Yerger at 503-246-1663 x119, or [email protected]

Rules of acceptance and participation in our programs are the same for everyone without regard to race, religion, color, national origin, age, sexual orientation, gender or handicap. Programs are partially supported through contracts with Multnomah County Community and Family Services Division, Multnomah County Aging Services Division and Oregon State Department of Education.

The Neighborhood House Youth &amp; Family Services Program serves children ages six to

eighteen and their families. The program offers educational support, after and in-school programs, case management, and family involvement services at sites across Southwest Portland. Services provided:

SUN Community School programs at Robert Gray and Jackson Middle Schools and Markham Elementary School that provide a diverse selection of classes to extend the school day, homework clubs, and other academic and social support services to students throughout the school year and summer Three mentoring programs ­ Westside Connections, Lunch Buddies, and Web Mentors ­ that involve over 175 youth and community members a year A career exploration and enrichment program that targets middle school-aged youth from immigrant and Spanish-speaking families to increase awareness of career opportunities and reinforce the importance of education in long-term career success Academic and social support for at-risk teens Latino youth and family advocacy, cultural enrichment, and translation services for Spanish-speaking families Information and referral to social services for youth and their families Free summer lunch and activities program Distribution of school supplies in partnership with the Grauer Back-to-School Project

The Neighborhood House Parenting Program

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provides culturally and developmentally appropriate services for families with children ages 0-8. The programs help parents enhance their parenting skills to better support their children's healthy development and education. Services provided:

Research-based information and guidance in being their children's successful first teachers Support between home and school environments with particular emphasis on kindergarten transitions Opportunities for families to create and participate in positive life experiences that build connections to their neighborhoods and schools Acknowledging and supporting parents in their own belief/value systems and building on family/child strengths Education and technical support to culturally-specific and other child care providers to improve the quality of child care in an effort to meet state licensing requirements

The Community Services Program

provides emergency services related to food, housing and other basic needs to low-income and homeless families. The services work to keep families in crisis safe and stable while they work to rebuild their lives. Services provided:

Emergency food assistance Rental assistance Transitional housing for homeless families Information and referral Turning Point, Neighborhood House's housing program for homeless families, operates a 24-unit apartment complex in Southwest Portland. Program services include case management, financial planning, life skills classes and recreational therapy. Residents also receive parenting support, domestic violence counseling, mental health counseling, and job training. Families stay an average of one year, working to resolve the issues that caused their homelessness, decrease or eliminate their previous housing debt, establish savings, and return to permanent housing of their own.

Program highlights:

Youth in the Career Exploration Program at Robert Gray and Jackson Middle Schools heard presentations from the FBI, Nike, and the Hillsdale Farmers Market. A cartooning class from Jackson SUN Community School, in partnership with the Art Institute of Portland, created an animated short film that was presented at Neighborhood House's annual auction to approximately 300 event attendees. In partnership with the Grauer Back-to-School Project new school supplies, clothes and backpacks were distributed to over 650 children from Southwest Portland. The Youth &amp; Family Services program served 1,500 students in SUN Community School extended-day activities and events, youth support, mentoring, and Latino outreach programs. A total of 5,500 students, families and community members were served through our range of services.

Program highlights:

The kindergarten transition project added two new schools in North Portland. In partnership with Cascadia Parent Child Development Services, the program will serve an additional 60 children and provide developmentally appropriate workshops to enhance kindergarten readiness and link families to area elementary schools. Parenting Program staff members speaking 13 languages, served 238 families from 21 ethnicities. One hundred percent of the children in the program received routine health care and immunizations, and 93% of families were linked to additional community resources. After six months, 88% of participating parents reported an increase in their knowledge of child development.

Program highlights:

The Child Care Improvement Project (CCIP) is a system of community-based

networks of family child care providers joined together to build and sustain economic success, promote high quality child care, and partner with parents to support children in achieving their full potential. Services provided:

Professional development opportunities and activities Early childhood and small business education and consultation Peer support and networking Parent involvement activities Individual home visits to support ongoing quality improvement

The Neighborhood House Oregon Head Start Prekindergarten and Early OPK Programs provide comprehensive early childhood development and family

support services to promote school readiness in children ages 0-5. At least 90% of the families have incomes at or below the Federal poverty line; 10% of enrollment is made available for children with disabilities. Services provided:

Developmental preschool education for 3-5 year-olds, combining classroom sessions and home visits, at two locations in Southwest and one in Northwest Portland Home-based services for infants, toddlers, and preschool-aged children providing weekly home visits plus parent/child socialization sessions Services in family childcare homes for infants and toddlers through weekly home visits with the parents or the family childcare provider Screenings and professional referrals for health, nutrition, development and mental health Parent education/involvement; referrals to community services in support of family goals

Last year, 31 families moved out of Turning Point. Of those, 74% moved into permanent housing. Of the residents who left the program one year ago, 90% were still living in permanent housing. Turning Point worked to establish a new partnership with Rieke Elementary School to help ensure that children from Turning Point families receive the academic and other support they need to succeed in school. The Emergency Food Box Program distributed a total of 3,195 emergency food boxes and 501 personal hygiene packets in the last year. The program provided assistance to an average of 767 people each month. The total number of individuals served was 9,198. The Community Services Program began offering clients assistance with housing and employment searches. A computer was made available to clients for researching stable, affordable housing options and also to access information on job opportunities. Help was available from the short-term intervention specialist for resume writing and filling out employment applications.

CCIP providers offer &quot;family style&quot; child care in their own homes, and are an alternative to center-based child care. Children receive home-cooked meals, plenty of personal attention and age-appropriate activities geared toward learning. Some providers also offer culturally-specific child care. Parents can find child care near their homes or place of work through the program's referral service. Families of the children served benefit by having access to a consistent source of quality affordable child care, which low to moderate income parents need to maintain stable employment. CCIP supports more than 100 home child care providers caring for approximately 800 children across the county.

Program highlights:

CCIP was awarded a $40,000 per year three-year grant from Social Venture Partners Portland to expand services for Vietnamese family child care providers and providers in Clackamas County. This support allows CCIP to expand from nine networks to ten. CCIP coordinated a citywide celebration of Child Care Provider Appreciation Day on May 12. Posters, bookmarks, TriMet bus ads, free radio promotion and free advertising space in Metro Parent and Portland Family Magazine were included as part of the awareness campaign. CCIP providers were entertained and presented with thank you gifts at a morning tea on their special day.

Program updates and highlights:

OPK added 11 children with funds from the Oregon Department of Education. An afternoon class was added at the Markham Elementary School site. Additional support from the Portland Children's Investment Fund enabled Early OPK to enroll 35 more children. Twenty-five of these participated in an innovative new collaboration with Neighborhood House's Parenting Program and Child Care Improvement Project to provide Head Start services to families utilizing family childcare. The OPK and Early OPK programs served a highly diverse population of 200 children and families, of which 64% were minorities: Hispanic (38%), Middle Eastern (16%) and African (10%). Of 32 staff, 17 were bilingual; of those 11 were bicultural. Over 95% of our OPK graduates were assessed ready to learn according to Oregon Department of Education criteria. As a result of participating in OPK, more children have health insurance, the number of children with ongoing medical care almost doubled, and all children needing dental treatment received services. For Early OPK, the children were on track developmentally for gross motor skills (100%), fine motor skills (94%), cognitive skills (94%), and social-emotional skills (87%). In addition, 100% of the children received health screenings, and all of those who needed follow-up services received them.

From Babysitter to Businesswoman

With two young children and limited English, Maria's options for making money were limited. She turned to in-home child care, but lacked the business skills necessary to make the most of her new venture. Maria found the support and education she needed to make a success of her business through the Child Care Improvement Project, which allows her to meet with other Latina women to talk about practical business issues as well as what to do with kids on a rainy day. Maria has been so successful she's moved from renting an apartment to owning a home of her own.

&quot;His Speech is so Good I Can't Get Him to Stop Talking!&quot;

Manny came to Neighborhood House's Oregon Head Start Pre-kindergarten (OPK) Program with a host of emotional challenges and a speech impairment that hindered his ability to learn and play with others. In just a few short months, Manny's progress was nothing short of miraculous. OPK teachers planned activities for his social and emotional growth by involving his family, a speech therapist and mental health professionals to help model appropriate social interactions and encourage communication. As a result, Manny has blossomed into a bright child with appropriate social skills. &quot;Now his speech is so good I can't get him to stop talking!&quot; his mother noted.

Neighborhood House is grateful to all the individuals, families, corporations, businesses and foundations that support our mission. We wish we had the space to list them all.

and assists them to remain living independently in their homes for as long as possible. We offer services to enhance life socially, physically, and intellectually, with an emphasis on promoting choice and dignity for elders. Services provided:

Senior Center programs, which provide a comprehensive array of educational, recreational, volunteer, health promotion and social activities for active seniors Case management to assist eligible seniors with supportive services to maintain independent living and special services to support family members who care for seniors Information and assistance to help seniors, age 60+, and their families to access a broad array of resources and services Transportation program providing transportation to hundreds of seniors each year for medical appointments, shopping and recreational activities

Program highlights:

The Transportation Program has grown immensely over the past year. Through our partnership with Ride Connection, Cedar Sinai Park, Ruth Haefner Plaza and Clay Towers we have provided 7,539 rides to 378 individuals. An integral part of maintaining independent living, transportation was available for shopping, medical appointments, and recreation. Across all programs, the Senior Center provided services to 1,578 individuals. More than 100 volunteers put in 10,500 hours last year, coordinating such events as the rummage sale, harvest bazaar and plant sale, several casino nights and the year-round gift bar. An art show and sale for students who take classes at the Center was also held. Proceeds from these fundraisers help support the Center and make class offerings and services more affordable for all.

Eighty-year-old &quot;Sarah&quot; has limited vision ­ just crossing the street is scary. On a fixed income and in need of food assistance, Sarah found the help she needed through the Neighborhood House Senior Center bus shuttle. After several months of taking the shuttle to exercise classes and to receive food, Sarah was able to save enough money to afford her medication again. For Sarah, that simple bus ride has meant a world of difference.